Agência Brasil*
Brasília – Brazil exported over US$ 11.7 billion in agricultural products between January and March this year. The value is 20% greater than exports in the same period of 2006, when the country sold abroad a total of US$ 9.795 billion. Imports also grew in the first quarter of 2007: they were 33% greater than in the first quarter of last year, when they totalled US$ 2.012 billion.
The sectors that contributed the most to the growth in exports, according to figures supplied by the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Supply, were meats, sugar and alcohol, coffee and fruit juice.
The ministry also pointed out the increase in exports to the Middle East, the European Union (EU) and Africa, respectively 79.2%, 23.5% and 20.6% in March this year when compared to the same month in 2006.
*Translated by Mark Ament
